Ford Introduces New Edge SUV for More Than 100 Markets

June 25 (Bloomberg) -- Ford Motor Co. unveiled a redesigned
version of its Edge mid-sized SUV to be sold in more than 100
markets worldwide, capitalizing on a growing global advantage in
sport-utility vehicles.

Built on the same mechanical foundation as Ford’s popular
Fusion sedan, the 2015 Edge has a new look and improved
technology to increase fuel economy, safety and keep drivers
connected, the Dearborn, Michigan, automaker said yesterday. The
Edge goes on sale early next year at a price yet to be
announced. The current version starts at $28,100.

Slotted between the small Escape SUV and the three-row
Explorer, the Edge is part of Ford’s global onslaught in which
SUV sales rose 38 percent worldwide last year to 1.2 million. In
China, the world’s largest auto market, Ford’s SUV share more
than quadrupled last year to 4.5 percent, Ford said. Still, the
current Edge, with a design that debuted in 2009, has been
losing ground in the U.S., with sales off 7.3 percent through
May, according to researcher Autodata Corp.

“Edge is in a segment that’s healthy, but it’s not growing
by leaps and bounds like the small SUV segment Escape is in,”
said Michelle Krebs, an analyst with researcher AutoTrader.com.
“It catches people in the middle, for whom an Escape is too
small and who are not quite ready for an Explorer.”

The Edge is outselling it primary competitor, Nissan Motor
Co.’s Murano, by three to one this year. Yet the 51,368 Edges
sold in the U.S. this year represent less than half of the
127,780 Escape deliveries, according to Autodata.

Adaptive Steering

The second-biggest U.S. automaker is looking to revive Edge
sales with the new athletic look and technology such as
“adaptive steering,” which reduces how much the driver has to
turn the steering wheel at slow speeds, making parking and other
tight maneuvers easier. The Edge also increases fuel economy by
creating an “air curtain” alongside the car to improve
aerodynamics at high speeds.

The Edge will be offered with three engine choices,
including two turbocharged versions that boost power and fuel
economy, the company said yesterday in a statement.

Ford is adding a high-end Titanium trim level, a fully
loaded model at the top end of the price spectrum, the company
said.

The Edge attracts buyers willing to spend more on a new
model, said Jim Farley, Ford’s global marketing chief. Drivers
who purchase SUVs, pickups and luxury cars spend the highest
percentage of their income on their vehicles, he said, citing
Ford research.

“The average customer buying a utility stretches more than
other customers,” Farley said yesterday at a briefing in
Dearborn. “Edge buyers will spend nearly 40 percent of their
average income on their Edge.”

The refreshed SUV goes on sale in Europe in the second half
of 2015, Farley said. He declined to say when Ford will begin
selling it in China, though said the current version sells very
well there.

“We sell every Edge we can ship to China,” Farley said.
“If we could make more, we’d sell more in China.”